System, method and article for siding corner

ABSTRACT

A method of injection molding a building product includes providing an injection mold with a plurality of gates located adjacent a perimeter of the injection mold. The method further includes commingling a first material and a second material into a flow, the second material comprising a color that contrasts with a color of the first material and injecting the commingled flow into the plurality of gates to form a building product. Thereafter, the method includes removing the building product from the injection mold. The second material extends through an interior of the building product and appears as contrasting streaks on an exterior of the building product to form a variegated grain appearance. The method also includes notching a portion of the building product, such that the building product has a substantially linear grain in an exposed portion thereof.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)

This application is a continuation of and claims priority to U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 15/854,266, entitled “System, Method and Articlefor Siding Corner,” by Stephen W. STEFFES et al., filed Dec. 26, 2017,which is a divisional of and claims priority to U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 14/754,179, entitled “System, Method and Article for SidingCorner,” by Stephen W. STEFFES et al., filed Jun. 29, 2015, now U.S.Pat. No. 9,884,443, which is a continuation-in-part (CIP), and claimspriority to and the benefit of U.S. patent application Ser. No.14/202,032, entitled “Variegated Building Product and Method,” byStephen W. STEFFES et al., filed Mar. 10, 2014, now, U.S. Pat. No.9,802,346, which claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(e) of U.S.provisional application No. 61/794,479, entitled “Variegated BuildingProduct and Method,” by Stephen W. STEFFES et al., filed Mar. 15, 2013,of which all applications are assigned to the current assignee hereofand incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Disclosure

The present invention relates in general to building products and, inparticular, to an improved system, method and article for a sidingcorner.

Description of the Related Art

Building products such as vinyl siding panels and roofing tiles arewidely used for protecting the exterior walls and roofs of buildings,respectively, as well as for enhancing the exterior appearance ofbuildings. These building products may have different profiles andexterior finishes to provide variety in the exterior appearance of abuilding. Typically, the siding panels and roofing tiles are nailed orotherwise secured to the building to fix them in place.

Formerly, in constructing vinyl siding panels, it was customary toextrude a sheet of vinyl with the entire profile formed therein, and tothen cut the sheet of vinyl into panels of appropriate lengths. Thesheet utilized conventional color concentrators designed to give it adesired coloration properties. The sheets could also be embossed orotherwise formed to add ornamentation to more closely simulate naturalwood building products.

Some siding is post-formed vinyl siding, in which the siding is extrudedas a flat sheet and then formed into the desired shape in post formingoperations. Rather than forming solid vinyl siding panels, other sidingproducts are co-extruded panels having a base substrate and an outerlayer. The outer layer is commonly called a capstock. The substratelayer is hidden from view when the siding is applied to a building, andis typically formed of conventional, relatively inexpensive but sturdypolyvinyl chloride (PVC). The substrate typically utilizes conventionalcolor concentrators designed to give it a desired coloration properties.The outer layer forms the exposed or outer component of the vinylproduct.

Existing products are limited to extruded siding or plank products.There is a need for variegated products that are produced by injectionmolding. Current methods for producing multi-color woodgrain appearanceinclude applied films and coatings. However these products arechallenged by long term durability performance issues such ascolor-hold, adhesion and abrasion.

Other options include extruded capstock that may be formed of the samecomposition as the substrate and may include a color material that formsaccent color streaks. These methods can produce variegated siding panelshaving a natural, wood grain-like appearance. It would be desirable toproduce a variegated building product using injection molding equipmentand, more particularly, to vary the appearance of the siding at thecorners of buildings.

SUMMARY

Embodiments of a system, method and article for a siding corner aredisclosed. For example, a method of injection molding a building productmay include providing an injection mold with a plurality of gateslocated adjacent a perimeter of the injection mold; commingling a firstmaterial and a second material into a flow, the second materialcomprising a color that contrasts with a color of the first material;injecting the commingled flow into the plurality of gates to form abuilding product; removing the building product from the injection mold,and the second material extends through an interior of the buildingproduct and appears as contrasting streaks on an exterior of thebuilding product to form a variegated grain appearance; and thennotching a portion of the building product, such that the buildingproduct has a substantially linear grain in an exposed portion thereof.

In another embodiment, an injection molded product may include a cornershingle resembling a single course of tiles that differ in size. Thecorner shingle may be a semi-crystalline thermoplastic and having a woodgrain direction. Streaks may be formed in the corner shingle that aresubstantially parallel to the wood grain direction. The streaks mayextend through an interior of the corner shingle and appear ascontrasting streaks on an exterior of the corner shingle to form avariegated wood grain appearance. In addition, an injection moldedvestige may be formed in the corner shingle. The injection moldedvestige may be located adjacent a perimeter of the corner shingle, andmay comprise the location at which material entered an injection moldthrough a gate.

An embodiment of a kit of corner siding panels may include a pluralityof sizes of corner siding panels. A first group of corner siding panelscan have a first dimension and a second dimension. A first corner sidingpanel can have a left first tile with the first dimension, and a rightfirst tile with the second dimension. A second corner siding panel canhave a left second tile with the second dimension and a right secondtile with the first dimension. Collectively, the first and second cornersiding panels may comprise the first group. In yet another embodiment, amethod of installing siding may include installing a plurality ofcourses of siding panels on a first wall and on a second wall, and thesiding panels extend adjacent to a corner of the first and second walls;providing a plurality of corner siding panels, each having a differentsize; installing a first type of corner siding panel at the corner, thefirst type of corner siding panel having a first dimension and a seconddimension; installing a second type of corner siding panel at the corneras a next course above the first type of corner siding panel, the secondtype of corner siding panel having the first and second dimensions inopposite locations as the first type of corner siding panel; and thenrepeating the previous two steps to form additional courses of cornersiding panels at the corner, such that the first and second types ofcorner siding panels form a pattern and cover at least portions of theplurality of courses of siding panels.

The foregoing and other objects and advantages of these embodiments willbe apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art in view of thefollowing detailed description, taken in conjunction with the appendedclaims and the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

So that the manner in which the features and advantages of theembodiments are attained and can be understood in more detail, a moreparticular description may be had by reference to the embodimentsthereof that are illustrated in the appended drawings. However, thedrawings illustrate only some embodiments and therefore are not to beconsidered limiting in scope as there may be other equally effectiveembodiments.

FIG. 1 is a schematic front view of an apparatus for producing anembodiment of an injection molded product.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged schematic end view of a portion of an embodimentof an injection molding apparatus and process.

FIG. 3 is a schematic view of an embodiment of building product.

FIGS. 4 and 5 are schematic front views of an embodiment of a moldbefore and after, respectively, material is injected.

FIG. 6 is an isometric view of another embodiment of an injection mold.

FIGS. 7-10 are isometric, left, right and top views, respectively of anembodiment of a corner panel.

FIG. 11 is an isometric view of another embodiment of a corner panel.

FIG. 12 is a schematic isometric view of the embodiment of the cornerpanel of FIG. 11, shown with injection mold flow lines.

FIG. 13 is an isometric view of the embodiment of the corner panel ofFIGS. 11 and 12, shown after being notched.

FIG. 14 is an isometric view of the embodiment of an assembly of varioussizes of corner panels, including those of FIGS. 7-13, shown installedon a building with siding wall panels.

The use of the same reference symbols in different drawings indicatessimilar or identical items.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments of a system, method and article for building products aredisclosed. Examples of the building product may include a shingle, suchas a cedar shingle or shake tile and having a wood grain direction(e.g., vertical in FIGS. 1 and 2). Alternatively, the building product11 can be a roofing tile (or still other building products) having agrain direction. For example, the building product 11 may simulate othermaterials such as simulated slate with a general grain direction.

In some embodiments, the method may comprise and the building productmay be formed from a one or two-shot process. Embodiments of molding abuilding product 11 (FIGS. 1-5) may comprise providing an injection mold13 (shown schematically) with a plurality of gates 15 located adjacent aperimeter 17 of the injection mold 13. Adjacent the perimeter 17 mayinclude at or on the perimeter 17. The materials used to form thebuilding product may be commingled prior to entering the mold, or theymay enter the mold separately or independently, such that they do notcommingle until they are inside the mold.

As portrayed in FIGS. 1 and 2, the method also may include commingling afirst material 21 and a second material 23 into one or more runners 27prior to entering the mold 13. The second material 23 may comprise acolor that contrasts with a color of the first material 21.

Embodiments of commingling may comprise intentionally not mixing thefirst and second materials 21, 23, such that any mixing that does takeplace is incidental and unintended. The method may include injecting thecommingled flow into the plurality of gates 15 to form an injectionmolded building product 11. The molded building product 11 may then beremoved from the injection mold 13.

As shown in FIG. 3, the second material 23 may extend through aninterior of the molded building product 11 and appear as contrastingstreaks on an exterior of the building product 11 to form a variegatedwood grain appearance. The contrasting streaks in the shake, roofingtile or other building product can be substantially parallel to theintended wood grain direction 22.

In some embodiments, both the first and second materials 21, 23 may bean amorphous or semi-crystalline thermoplastic, or a thermoset material.The first material 21 may be a solid at room temperature, and the secondmaterial 23 may be a liquid at room temperature, or both materials maybe solid at room temperature. The first material 21 may have a meltingpoint that is less than a melting point of the second material 23. Forexample, the melting point of the first material 21 may be about 20° F.to about 70° F. less than the melting point of the second material 23.

Embodiments of the first material may comprise a selected amount of abase resin, or a compounded material comprising a mixture of two or morematerials. For example, the first material may comprise about 85 wt % toabout 97 wt % of a base resin. The first material 21 may comprise a baseresin, and the second material 23 may comprise a colorant that has amelting point similar to that of the base resin. The term ‘colorant’ maybe defined as a pure pigment, a concentrate or a diluted compound.

Alternatively, the first material 21 may comprise a base resin, and mayfurther comprise a third material comprising a high melt streaker of asame polymer group as that of the base resin. The third material maymelt at a higher temperature than that of the base resin. The method andbuilding product may further comprise a blend of the high melt streakerand a fourth material. The fourth material may comprise a standard meltstreaker of a same polymer group as that of the base resin. The fourthmaterial may melt at a temperature between those of the base resin andthe high melt streaker. These materials may comprise different polymergroups as well.

In still other embodiments, the method and building product may have acommingled flow that comprises about 0.1% to about 5% colorant, such asabout 1%. Embodiments of the commingled flow may comprise about 0.1% toabout 5% of the high melt streaker, such as about 1%. In addition, thecommingled flow may comprise about 0.5% to about 5% of the blend, suchas about 2%, or up to about 10%, up to about 20%, or even up to about30%. Examples of the blend may include a ratio of about 30/70 to about70/30 (e.g., 50/50) of the high melt streaker and the standard meltstreaker, respectively. Examples of the base resin may includepolypropylene. The melting point of the high melt streaker can be atleast about 30° F. higher than that of the base resin. The melting pointof the standard melt streaker can be at least about 20° F. higher thanthat of the base resin.

In some examples, the gates 15 may be spaced apart from each by no morethan about 100 mm. For example, the gate spacing may be no more thanabout 90 mm, such as no more than about 80 mm. The gates 15 may belocated on a single side of the perimeter 17 of the injection mold 13,as shown in FIG. 1. In other versions, the gates 15 may be located onopposing sides of the perimeter 17 of the injection mold 13.

The injection mold 13 may comprise a cavity located within the perimeter17. Embodiments of the cavity may generally be in a shape of a flatpanel. The flat panel may have a largest dimension L (FIG. 1). Each ofthe gates 15 may be located within about one-fourth of the largestdimension L from the perimeter 17 of the injection mold 13. The methodmay comprise having substantially linear commingled flow through theflat panel of the cavity away from the gates 15.

In some examples, the gates 15 may be located in a hanger portion 25 ofthe mold 13. Any vestiges (e.g., remnants or evidence) of the injectionmolding process can be removed. In some embodiments, at least one of thegates 15 is an edge gate. For example, in FIGS. 1 and 2, two edge gateswith runners 27 are shown.

The method may further comprise forming injection molded vestiges in themolded building product 11. In some versions, all of the injectionmolded vestiges may be located adjacent the perimeter 17. The injectionmolded vestiges may comprise the locations at which the commingled flowentered the injection mold 13 through the gates 15. The method mayfurther comprise trimming the molded building product 11 after it isremoved from the mold, such that the trimmed molded building product hasno projecting injection molded vestiges.

Other embodiments of method may comprise a two-shot process. Forexample, the method of molding a building product may comprise providingan injection mold 33 (FIG. 6) with at least one first gate 35 and atleast one second gate 37 (e.g., two are shown). Each of the first andsecond gates 35, 37 may be located adjacent a perimeter 37 of theinjection mold 33.

The method may include injecting a first material into the first gate35, and injecting a second material into the second gate 37 at about asame time as the first material. The first and second materials may besubstantially simultaneously co-injected into the injection mold 33. Thesecond material may comprise a color that contrasts with a color of thefirst material. The molded building product may then be removed from theinjection mold 33. The second material may extend through an interior ofthe molded building product and appear as contrasting streaks on anexterior of the building product to form a variegated wood grainappearance. The materials, properties, colors, dimensions and otheraspects and qualities of the components may be provided as describedelsewhere herein for the other embodiments.

Referring now to FIGS. 7-14, other embodiments may include various otherembodiments of corner panels, methods and kits. For example, in oneembodiment, an injection molded product may include a corner shingle 111resembling a single course of tiles 113, 115 that differ in size. In oneversion, the corner shingle 111 may comprise only two tiles 113, 115that are substantially orthogonal.

Embodiments of the corner shingle 111 may comprise a semi-crystallinethermoplastic and having a wood grain direction. Streaks may be formedin the corner shingle 111 that are substantially parallel to the woodgrain direction. The streaks may extend through an interior of thecorner shingle 111 and appear as contrasting streaks on an exterior ofthe corner shingle 111 to form a variegated wood grain appearance. Inaddition, an injection molded vestige 117 may remain on the cornershingle 111. The injection molded vestige 117 may be located adjacent aperimeter of the corner shingle 111. As is known in the art, theinjection molded vestige 117 may comprise the location at which materialentered an injection mold through a gate.

In some embodiments, the corner shingle 111 may be further processedafter it is injection molded, such as notching. For example, FIGS. 7-12depict the corner shingle 111 as-molded, and prior to notching. However,in FIG. 13, the corner shingle 111 is notched. As illustrated, notchingmay include removal of the upper outer corners 119 (FIGS. 7-12) of thetiles 113, 115.

As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, other versions of each tile 113, 115 mayinclude a headlap 121 and an exposed portion 123 below the headlap 121.The headlap 121 may further include a pair of flow runners 125 thatintersect at the injection molded vestige 117 at the perimeter. A holeor void 127 in the corner shingle 111 may be formed between the flowrunners 125, as shown.

In still other embodiments, each tile 113, 115 may be configured with adifferent texture. Varying the texture mimics the natural differences ingrain and roughness between real wood shakes, such as cedar shakes.

Embodiments of the corner shingle 111 may be provided with a front 131(FIGS. 7 and 10) or cavity side, and a back 133 or core side. In oneversion, both the front 131 and the back 133 are textured, rather thansmooth or flat. In still another embodiment, the back 133 is contouredto follow and be complementary in shape to the texture on the front 131.

In some embodiments, the corner siding panels 111 may comprise a form ofvariation between them, such that they are not identical. Such versionsof the corner siding panels 111 may be provided as a kit. For example,the kit may include plurality of sizes of corner siding panels 111. Afirst group of corner siding panels 111 may have a first dimension 135and a second dimension 137. In one embodiment, a first corner sidingpanel 111 (FIGS. 7-10) can have a left first tile 113 with the firstdimension 135 (e.g., a 6.5 inch horizontal width), and a right firsttile 115 with the second dimension 137 (e.g., a 4.5 inch horizontalwidth). A second corner siding panel 111 can have a left second tile 113with the second dimension 137 and a right second tile 115 with the firstdimension 135, but are otherwise substantially identical. Collectively,the first and second corner siding panels 111 may comprise the firstgroup.

Embodiments of a second group of corner siding panels 111 (FIG. 11) mayinclude a third dimension 139 and a fourth dimension 141. In oneembodiment, a third corner siding panel 111 has a left third tile 113with the third dimension 139 (e.g., a 5 inch horizontal width), and aright third tile 115 the fourth dimension 141 (e.g., a 6 inch horizontalwidth). In addition, a fourth corner siding panel 111 (FIG. 12) can havea left fourth tile 113 with the fourth dimension 141 and a right fourthtile 115 with the third dimension 139. Collectively the third and fourthcorner siding panels comprise the second group.

In some versions, each corner siding panel 111 comprises a single course(i.e., a single vertical course, as is known in the art) of cornersiding panels 111 having only two tiles 113, 115 that are substantiallyorthogonal. Additionally, the corner siding panels 111 of the kit may beconfigured as described elsewhere herein for any of the otherembodiments.

As illustrated in FIG. 14, embodiments of a method of installing sidingon a building may include installing a plurality of courses of sidingpanels 151 on a first wall 153 and on a second wall 155. The sidingpanels 151 may extend adjacent to a corner 157 of the first and secondwalls 153, 155. The method may further include providing a plurality ofcorner siding panels 111, such as the various embodiments describedherein. For example, the corner siding panels 111 may have differentsizes. Embodiments of the method may include installing a first type ofcorner siding panel 111 at the corner 157 as a first course 161. Thefirst type of corner siding panel 111 can have the first dimension 135and the second dimension 137, as described herein. The method mayinclude installing a second type of corner siding panel 111 at thecorner 157 as a next (e.g., second) course 163 above the first type ofcorner siding panel 111. The second type of corner siding panel 111 canhave the first and second dimensions 135, 137 in opposite locations asthe first type of corner siding panel 111 in the first course 161. Insome versions, these steps may be repeated to form additional courses ofcorner siding panels 111 at the corner 157, such that the first andsecond types of corner siding panels 111 form a pattern and cover atleast portions of the plurality of courses of siding panels 151. Thecorner siding panels 111 may be configured as described elsewhere hereinfor any of the other embodiments.

In other embodiments, the method may further include installing a thirdtype of corner siding panel 111 at the corner 157 as a next (e.g.,third) course 165 above the second type of corner siding panel 111 atthe second course 163. For example, the third type of corner sidingpanel 111 at third course 165 can have the third dimension 139 and thefourth dimension 141, as described elsewhere herein. The method mayinclude installing a fourth type of corner siding panel 111 at thecorner 157 as a next (e.g., fourth) course 167 above the third type ofcorner siding panel 111. The fourth type of corner siding panel 111 canhave the third and fourth dimensions 139, 141 in opposite locations asthe third type of corner siding panel 111. In some versions, the varioussizes of corner siding panels 111 may be installed in a random pattern,a sequential pattern, or still other patterns, to form additionalcourses 169, 171, 173, 175, etc., of corner siding panels 111 at thecorner 157. Accordingly, the first, second, third and fourth types ofcorner siding panels 111 can form a repeating pattern and cover at leastportions of the plurality of courses of siding panels 151. For example,in FIG. 14, courses 161 and 169 are identical corner siding panels 111.Similarly, courses 163 and 171 are identical, as are courses 165 and173, and courses 167 and 175 as well.

In yet another embodiment, a method of injection molding a buildingproduct (e.g., corner siding panel 111) may include providing aninjection mold with a plurality of gates located adjacent a perimeter ofthe injection mold; commingling a first material and a second materialinto a flow, the second material comprising a color that contrasts witha color of the first material; injecting the commingled flow into theplurality of gates to form a building product; removing the buildingproduct from the injection mold, and the second material extends throughan interior of the building product and appears as contrasting streakson an exterior of the building product to form a variegated grainappearance; and then notching a portion of the building product, suchthat the building product has a substantially linear grain in an exposedportion thereof.

The building product produced by such methods may be configured asdescribed elsewhere herein for any of the other embodiments. Forexample, the melting point of the first material is about 20° F. toabout 70° F. less than the melting point of the second material. Theinjection mold can include a cavity located within the perimeter, thecavity is generally in a shape of a corner panel, the corner panel has alargest dimension, and each of the gates is located within aboutone-fourth of the largest dimension from the perimeter of the injectionmold. The method may include substantially linear commingled flowthrough the corner panel of the cavity away from the gates. The methodalso may include dividing the commingled flow into separate flow runnersfor each gate. Versions of the method may comprise forming differenttextures on different tiles of the building product. For example, themethod may include forming the building product with a front or cavityside, and a back or core side, and texturing both the front and back,rather than smooth or flat; and/or contouring the back to follow and becomplementary in shape to the texture on the front.

As described herein, embodiments of a building product may be producedby a one-shot method, a two-shot method, or multiple shot methods. Theinjection molded product may comprise a shake resembling a cedar shaketile formed from an amorphous or semi-crystalline thermoplastic andhaving a wood grain direction. Streaks may be provided in the shake thatare substantially parallel to the wood grain direction. The streaks mayextend through an interior of the shake and appear as contrastingstreaks on an exterior of the shake to form a variegated wood grainappearance.

Embodiments may include injection molded vestiges in the shake. Forexample, all of the injection molded vestiges may be located adjacent aperimeter of the shake. The injection molded vestiges may comprise thelocations at which material entered an injection mold through gates. Theshake may be trimmed such that the trimmed shake has no projectinginjection molded vestiges. The shake may comprise a single cedar shaketile (e.g., like FIG. 3). The shake also may comprise a plurality oftiles (e.g., FIG. 1) that appear to be separated, but are not actuallyseparated, from each other by tile separations along at least one sideedge or at least one end edge thereof. For example, at least two of theplurality of tiles may appear to be at least partially overlapping, butare not actually overlapping, each other, as shown.

As described herein, a plurality of colors may be used to form thebuilding product, such as with resin pellets. The term “resin” is notparticularly limited and may include a polymer, plastic, and the like,which may be thermoplastic or thermosetting. The term “pellets” is usedherein in a broad sense to include any type of pellets, granules,regrind, powder, particles, grains, spheres, plates, etc., that can beused in the method. The pellets are not particularly limited and mayhave any shape and size including any elongation (length/width),convexity (surface roughness), and circularity (perimeter). For example,the pellets can be between about 3/32-inch and about ⅛-inch in diameterand can be square, rectangular, spherical, etc. It is contemplated thatone or more of these pellet sizes may vary from the values and/or rangeof values above by selected percentages.

Embodiments of the resin pellets used to form the building product mayinclude base color pellets including a base polymer and having a basecolor, first color pellets including a first polymer and having a firstcolor, and second color pellets including a second polymer and having asecond color. The base polymer, the first polymer, and the secondpolymer may be the same or may be different. The base color pellets, thefirst color pellets, and the second color pellets, independently mayinclude one or more of the base polymer, the first polymer, the secondpolymer, and combinations thereof.

The polymers can each independently be, for example, a polyalkylenepolymer, such as polypropylene or polyethylene. Non-limiting examples ofsuitable polyethylene include ultra high molecular weight polyethylene(UHMWPE), ultra low molecular weight polyethylene (ULMWPE), highmolecular weight polyethylene (HMWPE), high density polyethylene (HDPE),high density cross-linked polyethylene (HDXLPE), cross-linkedpolyethylene (PEX or XLPE), medium density polyethylene (MDPE), linearlow density polyethylene (LLDPE), low density polyethylene (LDPE), verylow density polyethylene (VLDPE), and combinations thereof. Moreover,the polymers may each independently include other polymers or mixturesthereof, such as acrylics, silicones, polyurethanes, halogenatedplastics, polyester, polyethylene terephthalate, polyvinyl chloride(PVC), polystyrene, polyamides, polycarbonate, phenolics,polyetheretherketone, polyetherimide, polylactic acid,polymethylmethacrylate, polytetrafluoroethylene, and combinationsthereof.

One or more of the polymers can be opaque, translucent, or transparentbefore having the base color, first color, and second color,respectively. In addition, these polymers are not particularly limitedin physical properties such as tensile strength, hardness, elongation,density, glass transition temperature, and the like. One or more of thepolymers can be filled (e.g. mineral filled) or unfilled. Non-limitingexamples of suitable fillers include magnesium, phosphorus, calcium, andcombinations thereof. In addition, one or more of the base polymer, thefirst polymer, and the second polymer can include one or more additivesincluding, but not limited to, oxidative and thermal stabilizers, impactmodifiers, lubricants, release agents, flame-retarding agents, oxidationinhibitors, oxidation scavengers, neutralizers, antiblock agents, dyes,pigments and other coloring agents, ultraviolet light absorbers andstabilizers, organic or inorganic fillers, reinforcing agents,nucleators, plasticizers, waxes, and combinations thereof. Mosttypically, at least one of the base polymer, the first polymer, and thesecond polymer is fire resistant, e.g., includes a flame-retardingagent.

The colors may be generated, or formed from/using, any dye or pigment orother colorant known in the art. The colors are different. Typically,the first colorant and the second colorant may be relatively dark andrelatively light compared to each other. However, in the alternative tobeing different shades of the same color, the first colorant and thesecond colorant can have different colors. For example, the base color,the first color, and the second color may be such that the colorvariations are various shades of grey with varying grey streaks tosimulate wood shake.

Alternatively, the base color, the first color, and the second color maycreate any type of color variation by embodiments of the method toachieve a color variation simulating a natural building material such aswood, stone, brick, marble, ceramic, clay, slate, brick, metal,concrete, etc. The building product can be generally categorized intoone of various color variations; however, each building product may havea slightly different appearance. In other words, even though eachbuilding product can be categorized, each building product may have aunique appearance caused by streaks that are randomly oriented on thebuilding product and can have varying shades of colors.

In still other embodiments, one or more of the following items may beincluded.

Item 1. A method of injection molding a building product, comprising:(a) providing an injection mold with a plurality of gates locatedadjacent a perimeter of the injection mold; (b) commingling a firstmaterial and a second material into a flow, the second materialcomprising a color that contrasts with a color of the first material;(c) injecting the commingled flow into the plurality of gates to form aninjection molded building product; (d) removing the molded buildingproduct from the injection mold; and the second material extends throughan interior of the molded building product and appears as contrastingstreaks on an exterior of the building product to form a variegatedgrain appearance.

Item 2. The method of item 1, wherein both the first and secondmaterials are an amorphous or semi-crystalline thermoplastic, or athermoset material.

Item 3. The method of item 1, wherein the first material is a solid atroom temperature and the second material is a liquid at roomtemperature, or both materials are solid at room temperature.

Item 4. The method of item 1, wherein the first material has a meltingpoint that is less than a melting point of the second material.

Item 5. The method of item 1, wherein the melting point of the firstmaterial is about 20° F. to about 70° F. less than the melting point ofthe second material.

Item 6. The method of item 1, wherein the first material comprises abase resin or a compounded material.

Item 7. The method of item 1, wherein the first material comprises abase resin, and the second material comprises a colorant that has amelting point similar to that of the base resin.

Item 8. The method of item 1, wherein the first material comprises abase resin, and further comprising a third material comprising a highmelt streaker of a same or different polymer group as that of the baseresin, and the third material melts at a higher temperature than that ofthe base resin.

Item 9. The method of item 8, further comprising a blend of the highmelt streaker and a fourth material, the fourth material comprising astandard melt streaker of a same polymer group as that of the baseresin, and the fourth material melts at a temperature between those ofthe base resin and the high melt streaker.

Item 10. The method of item 7, wherein the commingled flow comprisesabout 0.1% to about 5% colorant, up to about 10% colorant, up to about20% colorant, or up to about 30% colorant.

Item 11. The method of item 8, wherein the commingled flow comprisesabout 0.1% to about 5% of the high melt streaker.

Item 12. The method of item 9, wherein the commingled flow comprisesabout 0.5% to about 5% of the blend.

Item 13. The method of item 9, wherein the blend is in a ratio of about30/70 to about 70/30 of the high melt streaker and the standard meltstreaker, respectively.

Item 14. The method of item 9, wherein the base resin is polypropylene,the melting point of the high melt streaker is at least about 30° F.higher than that of the base resin, and the melting point of thestandard melt streaker is at least about 20° F. higher than that of thebase resin.

Item 15. The method of item 1, wherein the building product is a shingleresembling a cedar shingle tile and having a wood grain direction, or aroofing tile having the wood grain direction, and the contrastingstreaks in the shake are substantially parallel to the wood graindirection.

Item 16. The method of item 1, wherein the gates are spaced apart fromeach other by no more than about 100 mm, no more than about 90 mm, or nomore than about 80 mm.

Item 17. The method of item 1, wherein the gates are located on a singleside of the perimeter of the injection mold, or wherein the gates arelocated on opposing sides of the perimeter of the injection mold.

Item 18. The method of item 1, wherein the injection mold comprises acavity located within the perimeter, the cavity is generally in a shapeof a flat panel, the flat panel has a largest dimension, and each of thegates is located within about one-fourth of the largest dimension fromthe perimeter of the injection mold.

Item 19. The method of item 1, wherein at least one of the gates is anedge gate.

Item 20. The method of item 18, wherein step (c) comprises substantiallylinear commingled flow through the flat panel of the cavity away fromthe gates.

Item 21. The method of item 1, further comprising forming injectionmolded vestiges in the molded building product, all of the injectionmolded vestiges are located adjacent the perimeter, and the injectionmolded vestiges comprise the locations at which the commingled flowentered the injection mold through the gates.

Item 22. The method of item 21, further comprising the step of trimmingthe molded building product after step (d) such that the trimmed moldedbuilding product has no projecting injection molded vestiges.

Item 23. A method of injection molding a building product, comprising:(a) providing an injection mold with a first gate and a second gate,wherein each of the first and second gates is located adjacent aperimeter of the injection mold; (b) injecting a first material into thefirst gate; (c) injecting a second material into the second gate atabout a same time as step (b), such that the first and second materialsare substantially simultaneously co-injected into the injection mold,and the second material comprises a color that contrasts with a color ofthe first material; (d) removing the molded building product from theinjection mold; and the second material extends through an interior ofthe molded building product and appears as contrasting streaks on anexterior of the building product to form a variegated grain appearance.

Item 24. The method of item 23, wherein both the first and secondmaterials are an amorphous or semi-crystalline thermoplastic.

Item 25. The method of item 23, wherein the first material is a solid atroom temperature and the second material is a liquid at roomtemperature.

Item 26. The method of item 23, wherein the first material has a meltingpoint that is less than a melting point of the second material.

Item 27. The method of item 23, wherein a melting point of the firstmaterial is about 20° F. to about 70° F. less than a melting point ofthe second material.

Item 28. The method of item 23, wherein the first material comprisesabout 85 wt % to about 97 wt % of a base resin.

Item 29. The method of item 23, wherein the first material comprises abase resin, and the second material comprises a colorant that has amelting point similar to that of the base resin.

Item 30. The method of item 23, wherein the first material comprises abase resin, and further comprising a third material comprising a highmelt streaker of a same polymer group as that of the base resin, and thethird material melts at a higher temperature than that of the baseresin.

Item 31. The method of item 30, further comprising a blend of the highmelt streaker and a fourth material, the fourth material comprising astandard melt streaker of a same polymer group as that of the baseresin, and the fourth material melts at a temperature between those ofthe base resin and the high melt streaker.

Item 32. The method of item 29, wherein the commingled flow comprisesabout 0.1% to about 5% colorant.

Item 33. The method of item 30, wherein the commingled flow comprisesabout 0.1% to about 5% of the high melt streaker.

Item 34. The method of item 31, wherein the commingled flow comprisesabout 0.5% to about 5% of the blend.

Item 35. The method of item 31, wherein the blend is in a ratio of about30/70 to about 50/50 of the high melt streaker and the standard meltstreaker, respectively.

Item 36. The method of item 31, wherein the base resin is polypropylene,the melting point of the high melt streaker is at least about 30° F.higher than that of the base resin, and the melting point of thestandard melt streaker is at least about 20° F. higher than that of thebase resin.

Item 37. The method of item 23, wherein the building product is a shakeresembling a cedar shake tile and having a wood grain direction, or aroofing tile having the wood grain direction, and the contrastingstreaks in the shake are substantially parallel to the wood graindirection.

Item 38. The method of item 23, wherein the gates are spaced apart fromeach by no more than about 100 mm, no more than about 90 mm, or no morethan about 80 mm.

Item 39. The method of item 23, wherein the gates are located on asingle side of the perimeter of the injection mold.

Item 40. The method of item 23, wherein the injection mold comprises acavity located within the perimeter, the cavity is generally in a shapeof a flat panel, the flat panel has a largest dimension, and each of thegates is located within about one-fourth of the largest dimension fromthe perimeter of the injection mold.

Item 41. The method of item 23, wherein at least one of the gates is anedge gate.

Item 42. The method of item 40, wherein step (c) comprises substantiallylinear commingled flow through the flat panel of the cavity away fromthe gates.

Item 43. The method of item 23, further comprising forming injectionmolded vestiges in the molded building product, all of the injectionmolded vestiges are located adjacent the perimeter, and the injectionmolded vestiges comprise the locations at which the commingled flowentered the injection mold through the gates.

Item 44. The method of item 43, further comprising the step of trimmingthe molded building product after step (d) such that the trimmed moldedbuilding product has no projecting injection molded vestiges.

Item 45. An injection molded product, comprising: a shingle resembling acedar shingle tile formed from an amorphous or semi-crystallinethermoplastic and having a wood grain direction; streaks in the shinglethat are substantially parallel to the wood grain direction; the streaksextend through an interior of the shingle and appear as contrastingstreaks on an exterior of the shingle to form a variegated wood grainappearance; and an injection molded vestige in the shingle, theinjection molded vestige is located adjacent a perimeter of the shingle,and the injection molded vestige comprises the location at whichmaterial entered an injection mold through a gate.

Item 46. The injection molded product of item 45, wherein the shingle istrimmed such that the trimmed shingle has no projecting injection moldedvestiges.

Item 47. The injection molded product of item 45, wherein the shinglecomprises a single cedar shingle tile.

Item 48. The injection molded product of item 45, wherein the shinglecomprises a plurality of tiles that appear to be separated from eachother but are not separated from each other by tile separations along atleast one side edge or at least one end edge thereof.

Item 49. The injection molded product of item 48, wherein at least twoof the plurality of tiles appear to be at least partially overlappingeach other.

Item 50. A method of injection molding a building product, comprising:(a) providing an injection mold with a plurality of gates locatedadjacent a perimeter of the injection mold; (b) commingling a firstmaterial and a second material into a flow, the second materialcomprising a color that contrasts with a color of the first material;(c) injecting the commingled flow into the plurality of gates to form abuilding product; (d) removing the building product from the injectionmold, and the second material extends through an interior of thebuilding product and appears as contrasting streaks on an exterior ofthe building product to form a variegated grain appearance; and then (e)notching a portion of the building product, such that the buildingproduct has a substantially linear grain in an exposed portion thereof.

Item 51. The method of item 50, wherein the notched portion comprises aplurality of notched portions.

Item 52. The method of item 51, wherein the notched portions compriseupper outer corners of the building product.

Item 53. The method of item 51, wherein the building product comprises acorner shingle having a single course of a plurality of tiles, each tilehaving a headlap and the exposed portion, and the notched portions areupper outer corners of the tiles in the headlap above the exposedportion.

Item 54. The method of item 50, wherein the building product comprisescorner tiles that differ in size by horizontal width, such as only byhorizontal width.

Item 55. The method of item 50, wherein the melting point of the firstmaterial is about 20° F. to about 70° F. less than the melting point ofthe second material.

Item 56. The method of item 50, wherein the injection mold comprises acavity located within the perimeter, the cavity is generally in a shapeof a corner panel, the corner panel has a largest dimension, and each ofthe gates is located within about one-fourth of the largest dimensionfrom the perimeter of the injection mold.

Item 57. The method of item 56, wherein step (c) comprises substantiallylinear commingled flow through the corner panel of the cavity away fromthe gates.

Item 58. The method of item 50, wherein step (c) comprises dividing thecommingled flow into separate flow runners for each gate.

Item 59. The method of item 50, wherein step (c) comprises formingdifferent textures on different tiles of the building product.

Item 60. The method of item 50, wherein step (c) comprises forming thebuilding product with a front or cavity side, and a back or core side,and texturing both the front and back, rather than smooth or flat.

Item 61. The method of item 60, wherein step (c) comprises contouringthe back to follow and be complementary in shape to the texture on thefront.

Item 62. An injection molded product, comprising:

a corner shingle resembling a single course of tiles that differ insize, the corner shingle comprising a semi-crystalline thermoplastic andhaving a wood grain direction;

streaks in the corner shingle that are substantially parallel to thewood grain direction;

the streaks extend through an interior of the corner shingle and appearas contrasting streaks on an exterior of the corner shingle to form avariegated wood grain appearance; and

an injection molded vestige in the corner shingle, the injection moldedvestige is located adjacent a perimeter of the corner shingle, and theinjection molded vestige comprises the location at which materialentered an injection mold through a gate.

Item 63. The injection molded product of item 62, wherein the cornershingle is notched such that upper outer corners of the tiles areremoved.

Item 64. The injection molded product of item 62, wherein the cornershingle comprises only two tiles that are substantially orthogonal.

Item 65. The injection molded product of item 62, wherein each tilecomprises a headlap and an exposed portion below the headlap, theheadlap further comprises a pair of flow runners that intersect at theinjection molded vestige at the perimeter.

Item 66. The injection molded product of item 62, wherein each tile hasa different texture.

Item 67. The injection molded product of item 62, wherein the cornershingle has a front or cavity side, and a back or core side, and boththe front and back are textured, rather than smooth or flat.

Item 68. The injection molded product of item 67, wherein the back iscontoured to follow and be complementary in shape to the texture on thefront.

Item 69. A kit of corner siding panels, comprising: a plurality of sizesof corner siding panels; a first group of corner siding panels having afirst dimension and a second dimension, a first corner siding panel hasa left first tile with the first dimension, and a right first tile withthe second dimension; and a second corner siding panel has a left secondtile with the second dimension and a right second tile with the firstdimension, and collectively the first and second corner siding panelscomprise the first group.

Item 70. The kit of item 69, further comprising: a second group ofcorner siding panels having a third dimension and a fourth dimension, athird corner siding panel has a left third tile with the thirddimension, and a right third tile the fourth dimension; and a fourthcorner siding panel has a left fourth tile with the fourth dimension anda right fourth tile with the third dimension, and collectively the thirdand fourth corner siding panels comprise the second group.

Item 71. The kit of item 70, wherein each of the first, second, thirdand fourth dimensions is a horizontal width.

Item 72. The kit of item 69, wherein each corner siding panel comprisesa single course of corner siding panels having only two tiles that aresubstantially orthogonal.

Item 73. The kit of item 69, wherein each tile comprises a headlap andan exposed portion below the headlap, the headlap further comprises apair of flow runners that intersect at an injection molded vestigeadjacent a perimeter of the headlap.

Item 74. The kit of item 69, wherein each corner siding panel is notchedsuch that an upper outer corner of each tile is removed.

Item 75. The kit of item 69, wherein each tile has a different texture.

Item 76. The kit of item 69, wherein each tile has a front or cavityside, and a back or core side, and both the front and back are textured,rather than smooth or flat.

Item 77. The kit of item 76, wherein the back is contoured to follow andbe complementary in shape to the texture on the front.

Item 78. A method of installing siding, comprising: (a) installing aplurality of courses of siding panels on a first wall and on a secondwall, and the siding panels extend adjacent to a corner of the first andsecond walls; (b) providing a plurality of corner siding panels, eachhaving a different size; (c) installing a first type of corner sidingpanel at the corner, the first type of corner siding panel having afirst dimension and a second dimension; (d) installing a second type ofcorner siding panel at the corner as a next course above the first typeof corner siding panel, the second type of corner siding panel havingthe first and second dimensions in opposite locations as the first typeof corner siding panel; and then (e) repeating steps (c) and (d) to formadditional courses of corner siding panels at the corner, such that thefirst and second types of corner siding panels form a pattern and coverat least portions of the plurality of courses of siding panels.

Item 79. The method of item 78, wherein the corner siding panels differin size by horizontal width.

Item 80. The method of item 78, wherein each corner siding panelcomprises only two tiles that are substantially orthogonal, the firstdimension is a first tile width, and the second dimension is a secondtile width.

Item 81. The method of item 78, wherein after step (d) and before step(e), further comprising the steps of: (d2) installing a third type ofcorner siding panel at the corner as a next course above the second typeof corner siding panel, the third type of corner siding panel having athird dimension and a fourth dimension; (d3) installing a fourth type ofcorner siding panel at the corner as a next course above the third typeof corner siding panel, the fourth type of corner siding panel havingthe third and fourth dimensions in opposite locations as the third typeof corner siding panel; and wherein step (e) comprises: sequentiallyrepeating steps (c), (d), (d2) and (d3) to form additional courses ofcorner siding panels at the corner, such that the first, second, thirdand fourth types of corner siding panels form a repeating pattern andcover at least portions of the plurality of courses of siding panels.

This written description uses examples to disclose the embodiments,including the best mode, and also to enable those of ordinary skill inthe art to make and use the invention. The patentable scope is definedby the claims, and may include other examples that occur to thoseskilled in the art. Such other examples are intended to be within thescope of the claims if they have structural elements that do not differfrom the literal language of the claims, or if they include equivalentstructural elements with insubstantial differences from the literallanguages of the claims.

Note that not all of the activities described above in the generaldescription or the examples are required, that a portion of a specificactivity may not be required, and that one or more further activitiesmay be performed in addition to those described. Still further, theorder in which activities are listed are not necessarily the order inwhich they are performed.

In the foregoing specification, the concepts have been described withreference to specific embodiments. However, one of ordinary skill in theart appreciates that various modifications and changes can be madewithout departing from the scope of the invention as set forth in theclaims below. Accordingly, the specification and figures are to beregarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense, and allsuch modifications are intended to be included within the scope ofinvention.

As used herein, the terms “comprises,” “comprising,” “includes,”“including,” “has,” “having” or any other variation thereof, areintended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion. For example, a process,method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of features is notnecessarily limited only to those features but may include otherfeatures not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method,article, or apparatus. Further, unless expressly stated to the contrary,“or” refers to an inclusive-or and not to an exclusive-or. For example,a condition A or B is satisfied by any one of the following: A is true(or present) and B is false (or not present), A is false (or notpresent) and B is true (or present), and both A and B are true (orpresent).

Also, the use of “a” or “an” are employed to describe elements andcomponents described herein. This is done merely for convenience and togive a general sense of the scope of the invention. This descriptionshould be read to include one or at least one and the singular alsoincludes the plural unless it is obvious that it is meant otherwise.

Benefits, other advantages, and solutions to problems have beendescribed above with regard to specific embodiments. However, thebenefits, advantages, solutions to problems, and any feature(s) that maycause any benefit, advantage, or solution to occur or become morepronounced are not to be construed as a critical, required, or essentialfeature of any or all the claims.

After reading the specification, skilled artisans will appreciate thatcertain features are, for clarity, described herein in the context ofseparate embodiments, may also be provided in combination in a singleembodiment. Conversely, various features that are, for brevity,described in the context of a single embodiment, may also be providedseparately or in any subcombination. Further, references to valuesstated in ranges include each and every value within that range.

What is claimed is:
 1. A building product, comprising: a corner shinglecomprising two tiles that resemble a single course of tiles, whereineach tile comprises a headlap and an exposed portion below the headlap,and wherein the headlap comprises a pair of flow runners that intersectat a perimeter of an injection molded vestige.
 2. The building productof claim 1, wherein the tiles differ in size.
 3. The building product ofclaim 2, wherein the tiles differ in size by horizontal width.
 4. Thebuilding product of claim 1, wherein the tiles are substantiallyorthogonal.
 5. The building product of claim 1, wherein the tiles differin size by horizontal width, and wherein the tiles are substantiallyorthogonal.
 6. The building product of claim 1, wherein the buildingproduct is formed from a commingled flow between a first material and asecond material.
 7. The building product of claim 6, wherein the firstmaterial has a melting point that is less than a melting point of thesecond material.
 8. The building product of claim 6, wherein the secondmaterial comprises a color that contrasts with a color of the firstmaterial.
 9. The building product of claim 6, wherein the secondmaterial extends through an interior of the building product and appearsas contrasting streaks on an exterior of the building product.
 10. Thebuilding product of claim 9, wherein the contrasting streaks aresubstantially parallel to a wood grain direction of the building productto form a variegated wood grain appearance.
 11. The building product ofclaim 1, wherein injection molded vestige comprises location at whichmaterial entered an injection mold through a gate.
 12. The buildingproduct of claim 1, further comprising a notched portion positioned atan upper outer corner of each of the tiles in the headlap.
 13. Aninjection molded building product, comprising: a corner shinglecomprising two tiles that resemble a single vertical course of tiles,wherein each tile comprises a texture, wherein each tile comprises aheadlap and an exposed portion below the headlap, and wherein theheadlap comprises a pair of flow runners that intersect at a perimeterof an injection molded vestige.
 14. The injection molded buildingproduct of claim 13, wherein each tile comprises a different texture.15. The injection molded building product of claim 14, wherein thedifferent texture of each tile mimics the natural differences in grainand roughness between real wood shakes.
 16. The injection moldedbuilding product of claim 13, wherein both a front and a back of eachtile are textured.
 17. The injection molded building product of claim16, wherein the back is contoured to follow and be complementary inshape to the texture on the front.
 18. The building product of claim 1,wherein the tiles differ in size.
 19. The building product of claim 1,wherein the tiles are substantially orthogonal.
 20. The building productof claim 1, wherein the building product is formed from a commingledflow between a first material and a second material, wherein the secondmaterial extends through an interior of the building product and appearsas contrasting streaks on an exterior of the building product, andwherein the contrasting streaks are substantially parallel to a woodgrain direction of the building product to form a variegated wood grainappearance.